Any Advice on Making Puff Pastry?

Q: I have tried many times to make puff pastry, but I always fail. I do not like the taste of the commercial products, so I have been determined to make puff pastry from scratch.

What would happen if I used half self-rising flour and half all-purpose flour on your recipe to give the dough some help with rising? Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated!

Sent by Donna

Editor: Puff pastry gets its puff from alternative layers of butter within the dough that steams open pockets as it cooks. With a trick like that, no leavener is required. As there are quite a few places to get tripped up when making puffed pastry, it's worth going over our detailed recipe a few times before you get started. Overall, this recipe is labor-intensive, so be prepared to work quickly and do some waiting.

And don't rule out "rough puff." This technique forgoes the folding of layers and works the butter into the dough much like a pie crust before folding. It might be the solution to your puff pastry predicament.